T1ρ Imaging and Quantification of the Meniscus Using a T1ρ -Prepared Ultrashort TE (T1ρ -UTE) Sequence

Jiang Du¹, Michael Carl², Atsushi M. Takahashi², Eric Diaz¹, Christine B. Chung¹, Eric Han², Graeme M. Bydder¹

Osteoarthritis is a multisystemic degenerative joint disease affecting not only articular cartilage, but also subchondral bone, synovium, the joint capsule and meniscii. Recently there has been increased interest in imaging and quantifying the impact of the disease on the meniscus. Meniscii appear low signal on the morphological images and accurate quantification may be challenging. Ultrashort TE (UTE) sequences with a TE of 8 s provide high signal intensity of the meniscus, and improved confidence in quantification. Here we describe a UTE sequence designed to image and quantify T1 and T2* of the meniscus on a clinical 3T scanner.